Organisational

Culture
It is the set of values, norms, guiding beliefs and
understanding that is shared by members of an
organization.
Its simply the way we do things around here
because of shared subconscious assumptions and tacit
beliefs


What is Culture?
Fundamental beliefs that an organization
considers to be important , that are relatively stable over
time,and they have an impact on employees behaviors
and attitudes

A small set of timeless guiding principles coming down
from the founder himself
What are core values?
Wipro
Human values
Integrity
Innovative solutions
value for money

Hindustan Unilever
To meet everyday needs of people everywhere
Deep roots in local cultures and markets
Total commitment to exceptional standards of performance and
productivity
Highest standards of corporate behaviour towards all stakeholders




Examples
Oberoi Group
Dharma: realizing values through conduct
Highest ethical standards of conduct
Teamwork
Customer first, self second, company last

Walt Disney
Creativity, dreams, imagination
Fanatical attention to consistency and detail
Where and how is it seen?
Main function is

To define the way of doing things in order to
give meaning to organisational life

To determine organisational behaviour, by
identifying principal goals, work methods, how
members should interact and address each
other, and how to conduct personal relationships
Functions of organisation culture
It has a boundary-defining role, it creates
distinctions between one organisation and
the other organisations

It facilitates commitment to something larger
than individual self-interests

It serves as a meaningful control mechanism
that guides or shapes the attitudes and
behaviours of employees
Functions contd.
Conflict reduction
A common culture promotes consistency of
perception, problem definition, evaluation of
issues and opinions, and preferences for action

Coordination and control
Promotes consistency of outlook, also facilitates
co- ordination and control
Other functions
Reduction of uncertainty
An anxiety reducing device which simplifies the
world of work, makes choices easier and rational
action seem possible

Motivation
Offer employees a focus of identification and
loyalty, foster beliefs and values that encourage
employees to perform

Competitive advantage
Strong culture improves the organisations
chances of being successful in the marketplace

Core values are held strongly and shared
widelyleads to commitment

Great influence on the behaviour of
organisational members

Result in lower employee turnover

Greater performance

Strong culture..
Members do not subscribe to the shared beliefs,
values and norms

Difficult to identify with the core values and goals

May result in sub-cultures :different departments
within such an organisation uphold different
beliefs

Negative impact on employees because they are
directly linked to increased turnover
Weak culture
Aversion to looking outside the organization for superior
practices.
Managers are arrogant
Insular thinking
Lack of entrepreneurial skills which
need to be possessed by managers.
Unhealthy culture..
How is culture created?

The main source of organisational culture is
the organisations leadership

Leadership refers to the influential individuals,
often the founders who have a major impact on
the creation of the organisations early culture

Organisational culture is therefore, not created
accidentally or spontaneously but through
founders who have specific values and beliefs in
their endeavour to realise their vision and goals

Most powerful CEOs in India

How leaders shape culture and ethics
Aditya Puri- CEO, HDFC Bank
Chanda Kochhar- MD &
CEO,ICICI Bank
Indra Nooyi-
CEO,PepsiCo
Adi Godrej-
Chairman,Godrej Group
Anand Mahindra-
Chairman&MD,M&M
Ratan Tata-Chairman
Emeritus,Tata Group
Only appoint and keep employees who think and
feel the way they do

They indoctrinate and socialise these individuals
to their way of thinking

Finally, the founders own behaviour act as role
model that encourages employees to identify
with them, thereby internalizing their beliefs,
values and assumptions

How do they create culture?
How Organization Cultures Form
External adaptation & survival

Mission & strategy
Goals
Means
Measurement
Ways to create culture
Internal Integration

Language & concepts
Group boundaries
Power & statuses
Reward & punishment
Ways to create culture
Artifacts
History and stories
Statements of principles
Language
Behaviour patterns-rites, rituals,ceremonies
Norms of behaviour
Heroes
Structures and Symbols
Beliefs, values and
attitudes


How Employees Learn Culture
Elaborate planned activities that make up a special event
and are conducted for the benefit of an audience.

Walt Disney Company- Gong Show

Wal-Mart cheer- Rite of Integration
Rites & Ceremonies

About company heroes who serve as models for serving
cultural norms and values.
Legends/heroes- IBM
Stories about how company/leader deals with crisis
situation- Brij Mohan Khaitan- tea baron- survived bomb attack in
London an dmilitant attack. Today, the tea gardens are guarded day and
night by Khaitans private army. He built a school in Assam investing Rs. 22
crores to provide quality education. His protective attitudes towards his
employees has earned him their unflinching loyalty.


Stories
Ceremonies, slogans, stories, rites are all symbols.
Physical symbols: physical artifact of an org.
Eg. Enron: premium parking spots ( negative element of
corporate culture)

The size, shape, location and age of the buildings might
reveal organisationss culture (Bombay House-Tata,
British Airways-changed its culture by changing HO
building )



Symbols
Specific slogan , metaphor or other form of
language to convey special meaning to
employees.
Slogan, motto

Eg. PeopleSoft Inc.
Language
The Behavioural approach: emphasises surface level of
culture-pattern of behaviour that employees exhibit.

The Competing values approach: on the basis of how an
organisation resolves a set of value dilemmas.

The Deep assumptions approach: Focuses on the
deepest levels of organisational culture- tacit and shared
assumptions that guide members behaviorsultimately
affects performance.
Changing Organisational Culture
Culture plays a dominant role



Great places to work
Why it's great: Mars follows five
principles Quality, Responsibility,
Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom and
makes it a priority to introduce new
associates to these principles as a part
of the on boarding process and training,
which is available in 22 languages

What employees say: The one thing that sets Mars apart
from other places is the genuine environment where
everyone is willing to lend an extra hand, put in the extra
hours or shuffle work around to accommodate our fellow
employees whether they are in a different segment or even
a different country.

Why it's great: FedEx has a culture of
volunteerism, using its global reach and
relationships with humanitarian agencies during
natural disasters to further the service of
emergency relief agencies and efforts.

What employees say: I started working for FedEx
after I turned 65. I have been employed for six
years now and I am not pressured to quit. I enjoy
the work atmosphere and am proud I work for
FedEx.

Why it's great: Google's "CareerGuru" program matches
Google executives with Google employees to provide
confidential, one-on-one career coaching and guidance
around the subjects of work-life balance, personal and
professional development, communication styles, and
conflict resolution, among others

What employees say: Though there are plenty of places
in the Silicon Valley where you can make money fast,
Google is a place you can call home.Your coworkers are
your friends, and everyone is passionate and really great
at what they do. Its not just the company, it's the people
that make Google truly great.
Googlers, as the employees are called, joke that they gain
weight after joining the company

They would, given the sumptuous meals - on the house -
Google provides

But Google is also about the mind, and the 'breakout rooms' -
rooms where Googlers go to 'think' - cater to just that

Upon emerging from the room, they may ask for a drastic
change of role, say from product engineering to human
resources, and the request could be entertained

The change sought can include a shift to another city, or
country
Life at
Google(video)



Life at The Oberoi Group (video)

For nearly three decades, Infosys had been used to one-
way communication with employees through 'town hall'
meetings and InfyTV, an internal network. Last year, it
realised that would just not do; employees wanted two-way
communication

And so it delved into the doctrine of Eric Berne, a
psychiatrist who came up with the 'parentadult-child' theory
that explains how people articulate their character through
behaviour.
Next, Infosys changed its communication with employees
from 'parent-child' to 'adult-adult'. It also introduced Infy
Bubble, a Facebook-like social networking platform
Microsoft India's helps - even encourages - employees
to develop skills which may have nothing to do with their
work

For instance, Ankur Arora, a Solutions Specialist, has
formed a music band with four colleagues. He believes a
people-friendly organisation should be able to tell its
employees: "You are doing a great job and enjoy your
life."
Anil Ambani loves the brand, Big -He has associated it with a
number of offerings from his group: from multiplexes to radio

Little surprise, then, that employees at his telecom arm, RCom, talk
about thinking big

The company puts its money where its mouth is, sponsoring a good
idea from an employee from start to finish

It also allows employees to move across functions

Its campus in Navi Mumbai has 10 food courts, an upmarket
gymnasium, a lake and a temple.
THANK YOU!
Brainstorm all the norms you can think of in the following areas
for your institute

Statements of Principles vision, mission etc
History
Dress
Classroom behaviour
Studying
Weekend activities
Living arrangements
Campus activities
Relationships with faculty
Eating on campus
Rituals and celebrations etc

Activity..